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September 19, 2014

Fraternity Under Investigation For Alleged “Date Rape” Drugs at Party

Tau Kappa Epsilon, a fraternity at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, is under investigation over allegations that some of its members inserted date rape drugs into the beverages of party attendees. According to police, several of the girls who attended the festivities had trouble standing or walking and experienced lapses in memory afterwards. Two of them had to go to the hospital. All of them had a red X on one of their hands, which was drawn on them while they were at the party.

Putting the drug Rohypnol, also known as a roofie, into someone ‘s drink has become a means of incapacitating someone prior to sexual assault. According to the search warrant affidavit, one of the women accused the fraternity of also trying to roofie women at another party the night before. Others said that on Friday, cups were placed below the bar while the drinks were made. Tau Kappa Epsilon’s chapter at the university has been suspended pending the investigation’s findings.

This is the same fraternity that last year was investigated over allegations involving three sexual assaults. No charges were filed in those probes.

Unfortunately, sexual crimes continue to happen on college campuses. If you or someone you love was the victim of a campus crime, you may have reason to pursue a Boston sex assault case or a Massachusetts premises liability claim against the responsibility parties, as well as those that could (or should) have prevented the crime from happening.

This morning, the White House launched the “It’s on Us” campaign. It’s an initiative to end sexual assault on campuses. About one in five women are sexually assaulted while in college. There are also male sex assault victims.

Colleges and their campus organizations are under pressure to reassess their handling of sex crimes so that perpetrators don’t get off so easily and victims are supported and protected. Just today, a former Southern Methodist University student sued the college because school officials allegedly created a “hostile dangerous” setting after he reported that he was sexually assaulted on school grounds in 2012. John David Mahaffey was charged but then the case was dismissed. The plaintiff says that Mahaffey threatened to use his influence as a descendent of one of the founders of the school to revoke the victim’s scholarship.

Also this month, another man sued Penn State for not properly reporting abuse incidents involving former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky. He claims that better handling of these cases might have prevented his own child sex abuse by Sandusky. The former coach was found guilty on 45 counts of abusing ten boys. Some of the sex crimes happened on the campus.

In July, the University of Connecticut settled with past and current students for almost $1.3 million a federal lawsuit accusing the school of mishandling sex assault and harassment allegations.